The auditorium is loud and filled with music and laughter. Someone is practicing lines in the corner, and others are doing their harmonies with a group.
Whether it is a weekday afternoon or a late evening, rehearsals are a big part of theater life.
The process takes a lot of time and energy—memorizing lines, learning blocking, and running the same scenes over and over until they finally feel right. It can be tiring, but there is a certain satisfaction in watching everything slowly come together.
The work that they put into the production, however, makes people wonder how theater kids must balance schoolwork, theater, and everything else in life all at the same time.
The truth is that during tech week, things can get super stressful and everyone involved in the show has to stay to work on perfecting it until 9-10 at night, making it hard to balance their performances and personal lives.
Backstage, it is a mix of focus and chaos. Costumes, props, snacks, drinks and people everywhere singing, getting dressed and doing their makeup.
“It’s a lot of finishing touches—getting hair and makeup done, getting into costume, and running through the whole show. A lot of the time, I try to get my hair and makeup done at lunch, [because] I don’t have any free periods,” senior actress Maya Liebetrau said after school during tech week
For theater kids, the stage almost becomes a second home. It is where they spend hours with their friends creating something together, and when it comes together, it is magical to watch up on stage.